Oneshot Collection
by emygrl99
Summary: A bunch of small things I wrote that've been sitting around on my computer for who knows how long
1. A New Family Member (LawLu)

**A thing I wrote when I was inspired to write some super quick LawLu fluff for the super lovely shishiswordsman~ warning for mentioned attempted baby animal drowning, but they're saved in time**

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Law and Luffy weren't perfect. Hell, even their tight-knit circle of friends joked and teased them them constantly, asking how they'd managed to stay together for so long when they were so… different.

Law was recluse, preferring to stay inside by himself, perhaps cozied up with a new medical text and a cup of tea unless forcibly dragged out into society by Luffy. One of these days was spectacularly troublesome, involving an unfortunate run in at a coffee shop, a small kitten, and a now ruined sweater.

Luffy, however, was no better than a toddler. Always happy and excited, eager to explore the world first-hand and unafraid of the consequences of say, almost drowning by jumping into a river in order to save said kitten from also drowning. (It was theirs now).

"Have I ever told you that you're an idiot?" Law groused from the kitchen as he heated up two mugs of hot chocolate for the shivering boy sitting on their couch.

"...no?" Luffy's voice called back, sounding innocent enough. Law muttered some more under his breath and stepped out of the kitchen, carefully handing a mug to Luffy.

"You're an idiot. Drink slowly, or it'll burn your tongue."

"Thanks Torao!" Luffy chirped, taking a careful sip before proceeding to gulp the rest of the scalding drink in one go. "Did you make a cup for Patches?"

Law pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. "I've told you, cats don't drink milk, and they especially don't eat chocolate. It's not good for them," he repeated in a tired voice.

"Oh." Luffy looked down at the small kitten resting in his lap, now sound asleep after the eventful day. Its fur was an unusual color, similar to a calico, but with grey and peach patches covering its body. Law ran a careful hand over its tiny body, pleased to note that the fur was no longer dripping but simply damp. It should be dry within the next hour or so.

"Can we keep her?"

"For the last time, _no_."

"But Law!" Luffy whined unhappily, unable to do much more than pout unhappily lest he wake the kitten up. "She has nowhere else to go! You saw what that bastard did! Come on, I'll buy her collar and everything! Maybe you're a cat person but you just don't know it!"

"I ought to buy _you_ a collar," Law mumbled, taking a sip of his own hot chocolate to mask the fact that he was finding it quite hard to resist Luffy's pleading at the moment. Their small apartment was in no way cat safe, not to mention that Law had a bad history with felines of any sort.

"What do I have to do to get you to say yes?" Luffy asked determinedly, and Law looked away.

"Nothing. We're not taking her in. I don't like cats, and she won't survive two minutes under your care. We'll take her to the pet shelter in the morning."

Suddenly, Luffy was right in front of Law, their faces mere inches apart. Law's breath caught in his throat for half a second, eyes flickering down to Luffy's lips automatically before there was a cat being shoved in his face.

"Patches, don't you want to stay? Tell mean old Torao that you like him!" Patches, now wide awake apparently, mewed happily in response, licking Law's nose and purring contentedly in a way that was just _too goddamn adorable._

"Say no to this face!" Luffy dared boldly, handing the kitten off into Law's hands and settling it onto his chest. He could feel her little heartbeat thrumming quickly in her chest, a rhythm that had almost been silenced today if it wasn't for Luffy's quick thinking. And even Law had to admit that her fur was much more beautiful up close, soft and shiny after the careful bath Luffy had given to clean her from all the river muck. Her eyes were a mesmerizing bright green too, and Law had to begrudgingly admit that it was no wonder Luffy was so enamored with the small animal.

Patches mewled pathetically, wriggling around in the awkward hold Law had her in, and Law could feel the last of his defenses break down. His head dropped and hit the back of the sofa with a groan.

"Fine, but-"

His conditions were cut off by a cheer from Luffy, who promptly swooped in to plant a happy kiss on Law's lips. He picked the kitten up, carefully cradling it in his hands as he spun around in victory. "Thank you thank you thank you thank you _thank you!_ " he cheered, and the sight was honestly so cute Law couldn't find it in himself to berate his partner.

These two were going to be the death of him.


	2. All's Fair in Love and Lasertag (SabAce)

**This one's been sitting around forever but I decided it was too short to post as its own story. No warnings for this one either :)**

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"Psst, Ace," Sabo called from softly behind his barrier, knowing that the freckled man was directly across from him on the other side. "Come here, I need to tell you something important," he said urgently, glancing around warily before daring to poke his head out from behind the barrier.

Ace's head hesitantly glanced over the top of his own barrier at Sabo after a few moments, suspicion clear in his eyes. When he wasn't immediately shot down, he glanced around as well before whispering back, "What?"

"Come _here_! It's important, I swear to god," Sabo insisted, continuing to scout the surroundings for enemies. It wouldn't do to let his guard down, after all. Ace may not shoot him, but Sabo was still fair game to the other's teammates.

"What is it?"

Sabo shook his head. "Not here, over there," he stage whispered, nodding his head over to the far wall where the two sides met. Ace nodded after a moment and the two quickly but silently made their way through their respective sides to the side wall.

Once they were face to face, Ace stepped closer, concern clear in his expression. "What's wrong?" he repeated, but Sabo only shook his head once more, taking Ace's wrist and pulling them deeper into Red territory where it was safer.

"I love you," he said simply once they reached the other wall, pressing a light kiss to Ace's lips. The freckled man chuckled but readily kissed Sabo back, bringing up a hand to cup the blond's cheek. They slowly backed to the corner of the dark room where they'd be safely hidden from other Reds.

Sabo pulled away from the kiss after a long moment, smiling sweetly. "Green wins."

Sabo them proceeded to shoot Ace directly in the chest with his laser gun before racing off back to Green territory, laughing victoriously.

Ace stood there in shock for a moment before the utter betrayal washed over him. He made to chase after his boyfriend—just as the lights flickered on. The overhead speakers clicked on, and a booming voice boredly announced the winner.

"And by a narrow margin of 1 hit, the Green team wins. Congratulations."

"You smooth fucker," Ace muttered in disbelief, unable to help but grudgingly admire Sabo's tactical skills.


	3. Life's For the Living

**Ace contemplating his life, the world, and his brothers. Warnings for mentioned depression and overall gloominess on Ace's part**

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Ace has always prided himself on being mature for his age, for being strong and able to handle whatever life threw at him. So when he met Sabo and then Luffy, of course he had been the oldest sibling, the one they would fall back on when they needed help. The truth was, Ace relied Sabo and Luffy just as much, if not _more_ than they did him. Without even realizing it, they had given him a reason to live. They gave him the courage to fight back against the overwhelming dark thoughts that had slowly but surely been taking over him. Sabo and Luffy had given him a new perspective on life, and Ace knew that without them, he wouldn't be around. He would have been swallowed by the darkness long ago.

Even now, there were days when he would look up and see the clouds pressing in on him, enclosing and suffocating him like lying underneath a heavy blanket during a muggy summer night. There were still days when he'd look around and hear people complaining and laughing and gossiping with one another, and he knows that if he were to drop dead in the moment, nobody would care. It all had never felt so fake to him before as it did in that moment. There were times when Ace would walk through town, noticing all the people who had succeeded in life, who were happy and content, who weren't carrying so much sin and regret on their shoulders that they were sure one day it would just crush them flat and that'd be the end.

Ace had desperately wanted to believe that he was getting better, that the hopelessness feeling that had consumed his life was fading away, but more often that not, a day would still come where he was certain his life was spiraling out of control and there was nothing ahead of him but despair.

On one day in particular, the three of them got caught outside in a storm, and Ace could feel the darkness edging into the corners of his mind. He had never liked the rain. It reminded him too much of memories and feelings of worthlessness that he would rather forget. Then Luffy came racing up behind him, wearing the biggest shit-eating grin that Ace has ever seen and splashing in every puddle he could find. Sabo was right behind him, and the two got into a contest to find the biggest puddle.

"Sabo! Look how huge this is! It's at least a mile wide!"

"Don't be stupid, if it was a mile wide then you'd call it a lake, not a puddle! Come look at this one, it's all the up to my ankles! Yours doesn't even cover my big toe!"

"What? No way!"

Ace watched their antics, not noticing the smile on his face of how the sight of his idiot brothers drove away the last of the darkness.

"Ace! Whose puddle is bigger, mine or Sabo's?" Luffy called, a pout on his face as he flicked a strand of wet hair off of his face. Looking at his brother's expectant face, Ace felt a playful urge tug on his heart, the kind that only Luffy could bring out of him.

"Neither's. Mine's the biggest and it's called the ocean!" He bragged, sprinting away from them towards the beach.

An eruption of complaints rose from the two other boys and they ran after Ace. It became a race between them; whoever got to the sea first claims it as their own, and wins the biggest puddle contest. After all, there was nothing bigger than the ocean, except the sky perhaps.

Luffy ended up winning, using his rubber arms to catapult himself faster than the other two could run, landing right in the ocean, which of course meant that they now had to dive in after Luffy to save him from drowning.

Times like those reminded Ace of how much the two had taught him, how much they meant to him.

The day Sabo was attacked by the World Noble and died, Luffy had cried and cried, and all Ace wanted to do was leave and never come back. He had a little brother who needed him now more than ever, and Ace knew he could never abandon Luffy like that. That was the day Ace learned that it was okay to cry for things lost, but he couldn't allow himself to forget what he still had. No matter how hard it got, he had to continue smiling and live life for the people who couldn't any more.

The next time Ace walked through town, he realized that these people's lives weren't as perfect as they seemed. He noticed the shadows behind people's eyes, noticed the slump in their shoulders and he noticed for the first time how empty their smiles were, how tired they were of pretending, and Ace pitied them. He realized how chained down they were, restrained by responsibilities and promises and expectations until their dreams had been stripped away and set aside for the tomorrow that would never come. That was the day Ace learned that it was okay to want something, no _need_ something, and that all he needed to do was reach out and grab it with his own two hands, simple as that. At the same time, he couldn't be selfish. When he found something he liked, it was better when he shared it with other people instead of keeping it to himself.

All Sabo had ever wanted was to be free, truly free. To be free in the way that he would be able to just get up and leave whenever he felt like to wherever he felt like just because he could, with his friends at his side and nothing holding him back. That had been stolen from Sabo, and for a while, Ace had felt nothing but rage whenever he thought about the man who had taken it from him. Over time, that rage grew into a deep, burning passion in the pit of his stomach. A passion to take up Sabo's dream and accomplish it for him, to prove something to the entire world. Prove what exactly, Ace didn't know, but he could see it burning in Luffy's eyes too, fierce and uncontrollable. That was the day Ace learned to stop apologizing for existing, that he would never be free if he kept worrying about what other people thought about him, that if he stopped thinking and just _did_ , everything else would fall in line.

That was the day Ace stopped fighting for his right to survive, and instead began fighting for his right to live.


	4. A Gentle Touch

**fun fact I originally wrote this whole thing on my calculator and was too amused by the fact that I could to delete it. No warnings worth mentioning**

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Luffy cried out in pain as his fingers were smashed in the doorway. He cradled the hand to his chest tightly, waiting for the wave of sharp pain to subside. It stung like hell, even if Luffy knew he'd be fine later. If he was lucky though, he might get a cool bruise from it!

Ace turned at the shout, eyes widening in worry as he saw the pain clearly etched on Luffy's face. He moved towards Luffy cautiously, taking the teen's hand in his own and gently uncurling the throbbing digits for inspection.

Without a word, Ace pulled Luffy's injured hand to his lips, slowly and securely pressing them to each finger one by one. His magic started working almost instantly, and the strained look on Luffy's face faded along with the pain, replaced with wonder. Within a few moments, the pain had vanished completely, and a few seconds after that, the redness disappeared as well.

"I'll never get used to that," Luffy said, looking at his hand as he curled and uncurled his fingers experimentally. They felt perfectly fine now, as if he hadn't just crushed them in a doorway not even a minute ago.

Ace smiled, happy to have brought Luffy relief from the pain. He took the hand back, repeating the action of pressing his lips to each finger, and this time a different kind of warmth appeared. Luffy could feel it spread throughout his body, pooling in his sat heavily there, but at the same time gave Luffy a sense of weightless elation that had him laughing.

The warmth had nothing to do with Ace's magic, Luffy knew. He stood up slightly on his toes so that his eyes were level with Ace's, his free hand moving of its own accord to cup Ace's cheek.

"I love you," he promised honestly, and leaned forward to capture Ace's lips in a soft kiss.


End file.
